Condition Twelve
by ebidebi
Summary: What starts out as a normal day for Team Possible quickly gets freaky when Ron finds Shego's contract outside of Drakken's newest lair. Just what is up with those two, anyway?
1. Surprises

Chapter 1 - Surprises

            "Ugh…tuna surprise…" Kim Possible muttered, looking forlornly at her lunch tray. Her best friend Ron Stoppable seemed less daunted by the meal, and was heartily digging into the gelatinous mass on his plate.

            "I like to think of it as…" Ron paused for effect. "…a tuna enigma, a mystery so great that one can only solve it…by eating," he mused, taking an enthusiastic bite. Rufus nodded in agreement, and also took a bite of Ron's food.

            "I just think of it as delicious, and I try not to think about what the 'surprise' part really means," Monique stated, setting her tray down next to Kim at the lunch table. 

            "Hey, Monique!" Kim brightened at seeing her friend. Ron was and had always been her best friend; nothing could ever replace or change that. But sometimes, Kim needed a girl to talk to. Some things, like shopping, fashion, and cute boys, were just impossible to talk about with Ron.

            "What's up? Any missions today?" Even since Monique had helped fight, she seemed to be desperate to get back into mission clothes.

            "Not too much, and not that I know of," Kim replied, answering each question in turn. She scooted her tray over just a bit, giving her friend a little bit more room to sit down. Monique took the invitation, sitting and greeting Ron and Rufus with a friendly wave.

            "Monique! Yo! Tuna _surprise_!" He pronounced the last word, badly, with his fake French accent.

            "Oh yeah, my man!" Monique replied, slapping high-fives with Ron and Rufus. She then proceeded to zealously dig in to her fish dish.

            "You're both disgusting," Kim stated flatly, turning to her strawberry pudding instead. So much for her female companion. She sighed and removed the plate of tuna from her tray, leaving just the pudding, green beans, and milk. Rufus chirped and gestured to her tuna. "Help yourself, Rufus…" she offered, pushing the dish his way all too eagerly.

            Rufus grinned and dove into the fishy mess.

            "You're missing out, Kim!" Ron had just finished his own food. He leaned back in his chair and let out a satisfying belch.

            "Okay, _that's disgusting," Monique affirmed. "But I gotta admit that I like the meal."_

            A familiar ring from inside Kim's backpack brought them all out of food mode and into mission mode.

            In response to the ring, Kim pulled out her Kimmunicator. Nine year old super-genius Wade's face was smiling on the screen.

            "What's the sitch, Wade?" She, Monique, and Ron said it in unison. With Rufus, the three of them laughed.

            "Nothing big, guys, just thought I would let you know that Dr. Drakken tried to break into a top-secret military base in San Jose, but just after I had dialed you up, security caught up with him," Wade replied with a smile. "They didn't catch him, but he retreated."

            "Drakken's not really quick enough to be a thief," Kim added.

            "Yeah, isn't that Shego's thing?" Ron put in. 

            "Actually, there was no sign of Shego at all, now that you mention it," Wade noted.

            "Maybe Dr. Drakken gave her the day off?" Ron suggested.

            "Maybe. Well, he was retreating back to his new lair in Santa Clara last I checked. Wanna go investigate?" Wade suggested.

            "Never thought you'd ask!" Kim replied. She stood up and Ron and Rufus followed.

            "Wanna come, Monique?" Kim asked. Monique smiled wistfully.

            "I so wish I could, girl, but I have a major test! Count me in next time for sure!" she replied sadly.

            "Will do!" Kim yelled back, she and Ron dashing of with a wave. Monique sighed. She felt like a third wheel around Kim and Ron when they were all together, anyhow.

            "So, how can we get there?" Ron wondered aloud.

            "Way ahead of you, Ron. Remember Marcy Kalper, at Middleton Manufacturing?" Wade asked.

            "Of course! Ron and I helped her when her factory caved in!" Kim and Ron turned left, towards the plant.

            "She's a pilot in her spare time, she'll help you out," Wade said. There was a volunteer ride service form on the KP website, and just about everyone she had helped wanted to help her in turn. "Signing off!"

*

            "Thanks for the lift, Mrs. Kalper!" Kim and Ron were decked out in parachute gear.

            "After what you did for me? It's nothing! If you ever need anything else, let me know! …Also, let me know if you can baby-sit next week. I've got two rambunctious little girls who just love you!" Marcy said.

            "Sure thing!" Kim yelled back as she and Ron jumped down.

            The landing went off without a hitch, and when they landed, they were face to face with Drakken's new lair. Everything was blue. The metal building was tall and threatening, and loaded with security devices.

            "Typical Drakken. Dark, blue, high tech…where does he get the money for these things?" Ron wondered aloud. Kim pulled out her Kimmunicator and buzzed her computer genius friend.

            "Wade, gimme a scan on the area," she requested, looking around.

            "Gotcha!" He typed the coordinates into his computer and paused, confused. "There's no one here, Kim, I'm not picking anything up," Wade reported. "The security's off, but it's got an electronic lock. It's abandoned."

            "Abandoned? So you can't find Drakken anywhere?" Kim asked. Meanwhile, her partner was searching the grounds the old-fashioned way.

            "Hey, hey, Kim! I found something!" Ron cried, waving a piece of paper that he had found. Kim ran over to where Ron stood, by the entrance. He handed the paper to her. "What do you think it is?"

            "This is…a contract?!" Kim held up the piece of paper, which had been ripped and stomped upon. She scanned the paper quickly. Her eyes landed on the signature. "Shego's contract!" she exclaimed.

            "Are you serious?" Ron demanded. He snatched the paper back from his best friend and read. "I agree to…blah blah…conditions: no clones…. Yeah, that's Shego, all right." He continued to read. His eyes widened, but Kim was searching the perimeter for any other clues. 

            "But what is it doing outside the lair…and why is no one—" Kim began. Her partner cut her off.

            "KP, I think you should see this!" Ron cried, holding up the contract. He passed the paper to Kim, who read and recoiled. "Shego has a last name?"

            "Ron, that's not the half of it. Whatcha make of condition twelve? 'No rekindling the flame?' What is that supposed to mean?" Kim retorted. 

            "Like…flame as in…hanky-panky?" Ron asked.

            "Drakken and Shego?"

            Realization hit the four of them: Ron, Kim, Rufus, and Wade, at the same time. They all shuddered.

            "That. Is. Vile," Ron groaned. Rufus nodded in agreement. Ron paused, thoughtful. "But strangely endearing."

            "Shego and Drakken?" Wade gasped. "I didn't see that one coming!"

            "I'm kinda thinking it already came and went," Kim noted. "Rekindling?"

            "But it's all ripped up!" Ron pointed out. He laughed. "Suppose they rekindled and ran off together?"    

            "Okay, Ron. Ew." Kim placed her hands on her hips. "And besides, if they eloped, why would Drakken be stealing things by himself?"

            "Point noted," he replied. Kim turned back to Wade.

            "Sure there's nothing else here, Wade?"

            "I'm positive, Kim, but I'll let you know if I find anything," Wade replied. His image flickered on the Kimmunicator and disappeared.

            "All right!" Ron shouted suddenly. "Your dad's making spicy chicken enchiladas tonight, and now we can make it back in time!" Rufus squeaked out an "oh yeah!"

            "Sounds good to me," Kim replied. She folded up the contract and placed it in the pocket of her tool belt, and the three of them headed home together.

*

            "Thanks for the great dinner, Dad!" Kim smiled at her father, folding the napkin that had been across her lap and placing it on the table next to her plate.

            "Yeah, thanks, Mr. P!" Ron added, wadding up his own napkin (which had never been on his lap).

            "You're welcome, of course!" 

            "And we've got chocolate pie for dessert," Mrs. Possible added cheerfully. Jim and Tim slapped high-fives with each other, as did Ron and Rufus. Kim's mother stood up and went to the kitchen to get it. When she returned, she spoke to Kim. "Well, we've heard all about Jim and Tim's field trip to the Aeronautical Museum, how was your day at school?" she asked.

            "Well, during lunch, Dr. Drakken tried to steal something, but the police caught him," Kim replied, passing the piece of pie that her mother had just cut to Ron.

            "Dr. Drakken?" Tim asked.

            "He doesn't steal!" Jim finished.

            "It gets weirder. He ran off to his lair, but it was completely abandoned when we got there. It was a brand new lair! What a waste!" Ron moaned. Rufus nodded solemnly in agreement.

            "No Shego?" wondered Jim and Tim. 

            "She's cool," said Tim.

            "She's hardcore!" Jim chimed in.

            "We did find this, though," Kim said, pulling the contract out of her pocket and unfolding it. She laid it on the table, smoothing out the wrinkles. "We're pretty sure this is Shego's contract."

            "Looks pretty beat up," Mr. Possible noticed, taking a bite of his dessert. "Mmmm…honey, this pie is fabulous!"

            "That's not even the half of it! There's this whole creepy clause in here about no romance." Kim wrinkled her nose. Romance – Drakken's breath was pretty bad…the thought of anyone, much less someone stylish like Shego, getting friendly with him was…revolting!

            Ron interjected Kim's thoughts with a spray of whipped cream onto his slice of pie. "They've split up before, haven't they?"

            "Yeah, I think Shego's left a couple times. It always seemed like she just wanted to teach him a lesson." She sighed. "Maybe it's nothing. Maybe we're interpreting the whole think completely wrong."

            The family was reading the contract as well. When Mrs. Possible's eyes fell on the signature, her eyes widened.

            "Wait a second…could it be?" Kim's mother paused mid-bite. "The same Shego Tanaka…that I…well, I never!"

            Kim blinked incredulously. "Mom, what are you talking about?" 

            "Shego! Hego's little sister! Dear," she began, turning to her husband. "You remember Hego, don't you?"         

            "Mika's boyfried?" He placed a finger on his chin in thought. "Tall, short black hair…I wanna say…penchant for tropical fish and the color blue?"

            "Yes, that's her!" Mrs. Possible replied.

            "You knew Shego's brother?" Kim inquired, pausing in mid-bite of pie. "You knew Shego?" Today was just full of surprises.

            "Oh, yes! Mika and I were in the Delta Kappa Pre-Medical Honors Sorority together in college! She was my Maid of Honor, and Hego was at our wedding!" Kim's mother sighed. "I'll have to remember to send him a Christmas card this year."

            "Didn't she marry Casper Strong from the Marine Biology program, though?" Mr. Possible asked, cocking his head to the left.

            "No, no, that was Elise, dear. Oh, but Elise! She and Casper had a baby, maybe a year after the twins were born! She sent me a picture, just the cutest little girl…" She paused, searching for a name. "They named her Samantha, that was it! She must be so grown up by now! I hope they haven't moved since I last wrote." Mrs. Possible smiled fondly.

            "This is all very…nostalgic, but what does this have to do with Shego's contract?" Kim finally grew tired of hearing her parents reminisce. Mrs. Possible turned back to her daughter.

            "Well, Hego once asked me, during our junior year, if I knew anyone who was looking to meet someone, because her little sister was having some trouble making friends. I guess Shego was a little shier in those days, or maybe too awkward and rude, but she was just a senior in high school—"

            "Wait. You met Shego when you were in college? And you never made the connection until now?" Kim interrupted disbelievingly. "How many Shegos could there be?"

            "Just never crossed my mind, I guess," Mrs. Possible replied. "Anyhow, so I suggested your father's friend Drew Lipsky, because he always seemed so shy, and he always seemed like he needed a woman to take care of him. I remember that they got along pretty well, for a while, but nothing long-term ever came of it." She let out a sigh. "And they always seemed so cute together…"

            "Wait! Drew Lipsky…?" Kim began.

            "Isn't that Drakken's name?" Ron made the connection as well.

            "Drakken and Shego?" Tim cried. He and his twin faced each other and gagged in unison.

            "Can we be excused?" Jim asked. Their father nodded them off, and the twins raced back to the razor scooter to which they had been adding rocket boosters before dinner.

            "Well…" Kim's mother's nostalgic smile faded. "I always…figured she was some other Shego. I mean, the Shego I knew was…well, she must have been a late bloomer."

            Kim's reaction was not quite as calm.

            "You mean that not only is my FATHER responsible for my arch foe becoming evil, but my MOTHER is responsible for pairing up Shego with Drakken?" Kim's head fell to her hands.

            "I just thought they would make a cute couple, Kimberly! I didn't think that they would work together for world conquest!" 

            "Okay, okay, I understand. There was no way you could have seen the future," Kim conceded. "But…isn't Drakken like…way older than her?"

            "Actually, Kimmy, I think Shego's probably around…" Mrs. Possible leaned in close to her daughter's ear and whispered a number higher than what Kim expected.

            "Really?" Kim gasped. "She so does not look it!"

            "So, workin' with the ex…guess that explains the fighting," Ron noted. Rufus chirped in agreement.

           "Actually, seems like they get along pretty well for being a former couple." Kim's countenance mirrored her thoughts: baffled. "I always thought they were just…you know, business partners, cashing in on each other's strengths."

            "From what I remember, they split on good terms…Mika told me that they decided to be friends," Mrs. Possible remembered. "Let me see if I have my photo album." She breezed out of the kitchen.

            "Well I'll be…old Drew never mentioned having a girlfriend," Mr. Possible mused, collecting the plates from the kitchen table. Kim and Ron were still too shocked to say anything.

            "Oh, here it is!" Kim's mother's excited voice rang through the hallway as the sounds of her footsteps became louder. She reentered the room, looking quite accomplished, with a college-monogrammed photo album tucked under her right arm. She began to leaf through, trailing her fingers gingerly along the memories until she found what she had been looking for. "Here they are, Mika and Hego! And look, there's Shego." 

            Mrs. Possible had opened to a page in the middle. She smiled her 'memory' smile and pointed at a picture of Mika and Hego, and in the back, Shego. The man was grinning broadly, as was Mika, but the smile of the younger girl was much smaller and much, much faker. Perhaps it was because her glasses took up most of her face. Or maybe it was the abundant freckles on her nose and cheeks. It could have been the hideous sweater and skirt combination she was wearing. It might have been the fact that her left knee sock slouched a few inches lower than the right. Maybe it was because her thin, bony legs and arms didn't seem like they matched with the rest of her body. But it was probably the whole package that accounted for her forced smile. It was the only part of Shego that looked the same – the scowl.

            "That's SHEGO?" Ron, Kim, and Rufus were all astounded.

            "She was just as cute as can be," Mrs. Possible noted. "Just the shiest little thing, too."

            "Shego? Shy? So not!" Kim shook her head. "This is too much."

            Mr. Possible shook his head, amused. "Late bloomer is right…"

            "People change, I guess. Drew Lipsky sure changed," Mrs. Possible replied, taking the photo of Shego and her sister out of the book and setting it down in front of her daughter. She picked up her photo album and began to leaf through the remaining pages. "Oh! Betsy Shardon, I need to catch up with her…I think she's working at the hospital downtown…" It was too late for Mrs. Possible – she was lost on memory lane. But she had given Team Possible a lot to chew on.

           "All right KP," Ron announced. "Go with me here. So, Drakken and Shego are workin' in the lair, super late at night, and things start getting a little awkward, if you know what I mean, and—"

            "That's enough!" Kim cut it. "There's plenty of disturbing images in my head already, Ron!"

            Ron sighed. "You got a point there. So, we can assume that they had some kind of falling out."

            "That's not out of the ordinary. Shego's always walking," Kim replied.

            "Yeah, but this adds a whole 'nother freaky dimension, doesn't it?" Ron shook his head.

            "Freaky!" Rufus agreed.

            "I guess…this is kind of good news, then!" Kim decided. "Shego and Drakken are so not the drama when they aren't working together."

            "Because they're hard to deal with together?" Ron posed the question sarcastically.

            Point noted. "Well…they're hard_er _together," Kim replied. "I mean, Drakken's got the ideas, Shego has the skills, and take them apart…well, you remember, don't you?"

            "I hear you, KP, but don't you feel a little guilty?" Ron asked.

            "Ron," Kim stated. "What are you talking about?"

            "Well, don't you kind of feel bad for them? I mean, ripped up contract, a history…it's not hard to fill in the blanks!" He placed a hand on his heart dramatically. "The emotional turmoil – it hurts me, Kim! It hurts."

            "Please tell me you're not serious, Ron," Kim begged. "These are supervillains were talking about!" It was kind of sad to think of Drakken and Shego as supervillains. "They're practically saving the world by splitting up!"

            "But is the world worth the heartbreak?" Ron asked melodramatically. Rufus wipe a tear from his own eye.

            "I had no idea you were such a romantic," Kim responded, her voice flat. "Do you realize how many disasters this is averting?"         

            "What about Shego?" Ron pointed at Kim. "She could do some damage."

            "Oh, please. I bet she just went to the beach!" 

            Ron looked thoughtful. "With all the tanning she does, ever wonder why her skin's still pale green?"

            "Focus, Ron!" Their conversation was interrupted by the ring of the Kimmunicator. Kim pulled it out and laid it on the table between Ron and herself. "Hey Wade, what's new?"

            "Hey Kim. Just wanted to let you know that I got a location on Shego. She's been IDed in Aruba," Wade reported.

            "No surprises there," Kim responded, throwing an "I told you so" look at Ron. "Any location on Drakken yet?"

            "I've been doing some digging, but I can't find anything." He sighed. "No one I've talked to has seen any sign of him."

            "Actually, Wade, we've got a bit of weird news about the two of them," Kim began. "My mom actually…set them up together in college."

            "Set them up?"

            "Shego was a nerd, Wade! She was a geek!" Ron held up the photograph for Wade to see. "She's the short one."

            Wade was speechless.


	2. Power Struggle

Chapter 2 - Power Struggle

            "I can't believe I'm doing this…" Kim muttered under her breath. 

She stood with her mother in front of a quaint red brick house on the porch. They were surrounded by pansies within a black iron fence. Mrs. Possible rapped on the door with the wrought iron door knocker. Seconds later, they heard footsteps and the door swung open.

            She saw the enthusiastic look on the face of the black haired woman and covered her ears, knowing what was to come next.

            "Oooooh!!!" Mika and Mrs. Possible screamed. After that, the squeals of reuniting were so high pitched that Kim couldn't make any of the words that they were squeaking out.

            "Mika!" Mrs. Possible cried. "Or should I say Doctor! How ARE you?"

            Mika (who's last name was Parker, Kim had learned) had black hair that was cut in a bob that flipped out on each side, and her face and features were round and maternal. Having met Hego, she seemed exactly like the kind of woman he would want to marry – upbeat and motherly – the type that Shego would despise and try to rob.

            "And what about you, Doctor Possible! And this must be Kimberly, oh, the last time I saw you, you were in diapers!" Mika cried, patting Kim's head.

            Kim laughed forcedly. Like she had never heard that before. Kim barely knew any of her mother's friends – they had all moved all over the country after college, Kim's parents included..

            "Oh, you look just like your mother!" She went on. "Come in, ladies! I'll put on some tea!" She coaxed them in, shutting the door once they had entered. The house was impeccably clean and very country-chic. Kim's own house was pretty modern, but her family wasn't quite so…motherly.

            "Go ahead and sit down," Mika encouraged, dashing into the kitchen. Running water could be heard, and then the click of the gas stove. She ran back into the room and sat down on a floral couch, next to the spot that Mrs. Possible had chosen.

            The house was a pretty good size, but with a marine biologist living by herself, Kim guessed that, as with her own family, money wasn't really a problem. The carpet was a sparkling clean beige that perfectly coordinated with the upholstery of the couch and chair.

            "So, not that I'm not happy to see you, but what brings you two here?" Mika asked. 

            Mrs. Possible smiled. "Sorry to show up unannounced! I wanted to catch up, and my daughter just begged to come along."

            Kim smiled a bit, but she was really more interested in looking around the room. The ceilings were really high, and a large painting of the Mika's parents, presumably,  hung over the fireplace on the wall to her left. There was a wall of bookshelves on the right, covered with carefully placed books, trinkets, and framed photographs.

            "Mind if I look around?" Kim asked, pointing to the shelves.

            "Go right ahead!" Mika replied. She turned to Mrs. Possible and they began to chat.

            Kim stood and walked to the right, to the shelves. There were several intricate, hand made glass tropical fish in bright, fruity colors. Must have been gifts from Hego.  She guessed that there were probably real tropical fish in some other room. Were Hego and Mika still dating? Why hadn't they married? 

            Then, there were the books. She recognized some from her parents' collections, medical books, scholarly journals, textbooks, and "An Illustrated Guide to Tropical Aquatic Creatures." And of course, the photos.

            There were several pictures of just the two of them, Mika and Hego, in various vacation spots, and they seemed recent. They must have been together – maybe Hego was focusing on the superhero business before settling down.

            Kim's eyes fell upon another photo. This one had more people in it, one of whom she instantly recognized. Shego – was she part Japanese? The green eyes were a dead giveaway that she wasn't full, as was the fact that some of her siblings were not raven-haired. But the last name….

            It looked like the photo was taken at a family reunion of sorts. Kim had been right - there was an older woman, with dark brown hair and glasses, and a similarly-aged Japanese man who must have been Shego's parents. They were seated at a picnic table opposite Hego and Mika, and Wego and…Wego were standing in the back. Did they both have the same name? Were there really two of them or just one and a copy? Mego was seemingly talking (probably about himself), and way in the back was Shego, looking quite sour – no Drakken.

            The picture, Kim deduced, must have been just after the college years, sometime before Shego left. Shego was looking a little better, with no glasses and more curves, but still just as unpleasant. She looked ready to bite something, actually.

            And yet…it was another whole dimension of Shego. Kim had never really thought about villains and their families, with the exception of the momma's boy Frugal Lucre. The family side of Shego? Even after meeting her family, Kim had a lot to wonder about their dimensions. And the Shego and Drakken thing was even worse. But – one issue at a time.

            There were babies in the picture as well, probably cousins and the like. Kim tried to imagine Shego around children and quite frankly, she couldn't…all she could see was disaster. 

            She was just turning to look at a postcard with an exotic beach scene on the front when…

            "Kim Possible?"                    

            Mika's voice hit Kim's ears like lightning. 

            "Yeah, that's me," she said slowly.

            Mika's strange, unreadable look turned into a little, far-off half-smile. She must have known more than Kim thought she had. "So I suppose you know Shego and Drew?" she finally voiced. It was more of a statement than a question. 

            Kim chose her words carefully. "We've met," she responded.

            Mika sighed. "I wonder where she went wrong…the rest of her family is so friendly." She paused and laughed just a little, covering her mouth. "I guess I never made the connection that the Kimberly Possible I heard so much about was the same as the Kim Possible who was always on the news."

            What was it with everyone missing these perfectly obvious things?

            "I'm sorry," Kim stammered. It was a dumb response, but she could think of nothing better.

            "Kim, don't be silly! If it wasn't for people like you and Hego, who knows what kind of world we would be living in?" Mika laughed, a little more relaxed. "It's not your fault." She looked like she wanted to say more, but she stopped herself.

            "I'm to blame," Kim's mother sighed. "If I never would have played cupid…" Kim's eyes widened. Her mother and Mika must have been talking about pretty heavy stuff before her own name had come into the conversation. Mrs. Possible had obviously filled Mika in. How long had they been talking? How long had Kim been looking at the pictures?

            "You think that Drew was what made her go bad? If you never would have introduced her to Drew, she would have still been angry and would have still gone evil! No, Shego made her mistakes herself, Drew was just a little catalyst," Mika affirmed. She laughed again, but sadly this time. "We spend so much time thinking about the past…I feel so old sometimes. Oh, goodness, it must have been almost twenty years ago!" At this, Kim's mother also chuckled good-naturedly.

            "Has it really?" Mrs. Possible sighed, but it was a happy sigh. "I suppose you're right."

            Kim chose this moment to once again tune out of the conversation. She hoped that she would never have to talk like that, and turned her mind towards the more pressing issues.

            Drakken - err…Drew must have ignited some change (or some flame, Kim thought) in Shego's personality, some spark to finally make her crack, the last straw. But Hego had never heard of Dr. Drakken – maybe he knew of Drew Lipsky? Did he know that they would attempt world conquest? He must have known that they were an item. She cringed. An item? This was so, so wrong. And it wasn't just because Drakken was…less than attractive, or because Shego was not exactly the most pleasant person Kim had ever met. Well, maybe that was part of it, but as a whole, it was just…completely wide of the mark!

            "…but still…I always thought it was just the spoils of evil that keep her in it…now, I really think it's mostly him that keeps her on that path. She would follow him anywhere and he'd do the same... I should have seen it coming." 

            Kim had caught the end of Mika's statement and nearly choked on it. She turned back around to face the two women, and saw that her mother was nodding sympathetically.

            "What do you mean?" Kim asked.

            "Oh, don't worry about it, Kimmy. You won't have to worry about things like this for a few more years," Mrs. Possible replied somewhat sternly, sounding much too much like Mr. Possible. 

            "Mom…" Kim groaned. "I'm talking about the mission here, not about me!" She placed her hands indignantly on her hips.

            "Mission?" Mika asked. Kim's hand flew to her mouth…oops. She wasn't supposed to say anything about a mission.

            "Oh, Kim's just curious about her arch foes," Mrs. Possible replied off-handedly, as if it were the most routine thing in the world.

            Mika closed her eyes patiently and took a deep breath. Kim felt lucky that the woman was so kind. Of course, dating a hero probably helped with the business of understanding.

            "Well, you see, Dr. Strong, Drakken and Shego…" she searched for the correct word. "Split up again, and it's been a couple weeks, and we haven't caught sight of Drakken at all, and I was wondering--"

            "Have you seen Shego?" Mika interrupted, suddenly worried.

            "Oh yeah, she's basically been island hopping in the Florida Keys for the past few days," Kim replied. "No problems there."

            "She always did enjoy the beach." Mika grinned.

            "Oh…" Kim replied, discouraged.

            "But I'd wager that either Drew's chasing after her or plotting to kill her," Mika continued nonchalantly. She didn't seem the least bit worried. "But then again, I haven't talked to her in years."

            "Trying to kill her?" Kim blinked in surprise. She knew full well that Dr. Drakken was incapable of killing an ant, much less his sidekick…err, ex-girlfriend.

            "Oh, dear, I'm just joking!"

            "It's just really weird that they aren't working together." Kim scratched her head. "Although it is kind of nice to have two less supervillains to deal with." It was actually not just kind of nice; it was awesome. Why had she let Ron talk her into this? Okay, arch foe-ness aside, Drakken was kind of a nice guy, and Kim did feel sorry for him. And even though she wasn't friendly, Shego could be all right at times, as well.

            "I wouldn't worry about Drew plotting anything by himself…oh, he'll plot, all right, he but I bet he can't carry anything out without Shego." Mika giggled. "She's as smart as they come."

            "I know that. It's just…really weird to not be fighting them. That sounds so stupid. See, it's all my best friend Ron's idea--" Kim began.

            "Oh no," Mika cut her off. "You're not going to try and pair them back together, are you? I know your motto says you can do anything, and I don't doubt that, but trust me, you do not want to get involved there!"

            Kim responded with a morbidly curious look. Mrs. Possible laughed.

            "She's right, Kimmy."

            "I thought you said they split on good terms, mom?" 

            "Oh sure, the first time," Mika replied, sighing as if the explanation was going to take a while. "But after the second time, third time, fourth time…well, you get the idea. Just believe me. Hego tried to help them out…of course, he didn't know that Drew would attempt world conquest… Anyhow, you really shouldn't get involved. It's impossible to make those two be reasonable. Don't involve yourself any further than you have to, they will just make your head spin." Kim was truly convinced that this was the voce of experience. "Shego always liked to fight, but fighting with him was completely different. Fighting makes her happy now." Mika shook her head. "They really baffle me."

            "One of those twisted off again, on again things?" Kim asked.

            "Much, much worse." Once again, Mika closed her eyes for a rather long blink. "It's a case of knowing each other way too well for either one's good." She looked at Kim's mother knowingly, and once again, Kim felt like the child. "They just fill far too many of each other's needs at the same time. Friend, partner, enemy…" Thankfully, she stopped before saying anything else. "Hego gave up trying to reason with Shego long, long ago, but I wonder…would she have left if we persisted? Ah well…Rest assured, Kim, that they will work it out, and rest assured that it'll happen again later anyway." Mika smiled another sad smile and looked longingly at the bookcase, probably thinking about Hego. "They'll work it out – they never could stay apart for very long."

            That was a relief for Kim. Maybe Ron would be satisfied with that answer. As long as Shego and Drakken didn't accomplish anything, they could stay separated. They probably liked the drama of it all.

            Apparently, Shego was far more onion-like than Kim had originally thought. She knew that her father would have something to say about Kim assuming that villains weren't just as multi-dimensional as everyone else. Except maybe Bonnie. Bonne was pretty much one-dimensional.

*

            "So, after that, Mika and my mom caught up for the next hour and I watched her tropical fish. She actually had one of their kitchen walls blown out and replaced with a gigantic aquarium," Kim reported to Ron on the way to school the next day. She had told him all the details she had learned about Shego as well.

            "Fish wall, sounds cool," Ron mused. 

            "So, can we let Drakken and Shego work out their troubles on their own?" Kim prepared to stick out her lower lip, but Ron stopped her, waving his hands in front of him in protest.

            "Okay, okay!" He gave in. "I never knew those two had so much between them…kinda creepy when you look back on it, huh?"

            "Majorly creepy." They were approaching the school. "But Dr. Parker really made me think…they totally deserve each other. And you gotta admit, it's nice to relax for a change!"

            The words had barely escaped her mouth when the Kimmunicator rang, begging for attention.

            "What's the sitch?" Kim asked, once she had produced the device from her book bag. Ron leaned over her shoulder to see the screen.

            "Hey, guys. We got a hit on the site. There's been a power failure at Middleton Electric and when they tried to change the fuses, I think they somehow…broke the circuit breaker?" Wade sounded quite amused at this. "There was a big surge, but then it leveled out. They're still in the dark at the electric company, though."

            "We'll be right there," Kim replied. "But you'll have to give me some guidance with the repairs."

            Luckily, Middleton Electric, the main electricity provider for the town, was just a short jog away from school, so Ron and Kim made it there in just under five minutes. The two were immediately greeted outside the headquarters by a dark, plump man in blue overalls.

            "Thank goodness, Kim Possible! I'm Lee Lincoln, head electrician, and we have a slight problem…" he began. 

            The tall woman next to him furrowed her eyebrows and disagreed. "A _slight problem?" She shook her head and handed flashlights to Kim and Ron. "I'm Sandy Gray, by the way." Sandy pointed at Lee. "I'm _his_ boss. Come with me," she said, leading them into the dark building. The four clicked on their flashlights once they reached the room where the box was kept and daylight from outside wasn't lighting the inside of the building any longer._

            "I was trying to fix the breaker, and I guess I got a little overexcited…" Lee said, once they reached the breaker. He shined his flashlight onto the box, where wires were crossed and snapped.

            "Went crazy with panic is more like it! He missed the lecture on standard intra-company outage procedure." Sandy snapped. "I tried to work it out, but I can't make heads or tails of what he did. We don't have time to call in an outside technician, because there's an inspection later today, so we figured that out local heroes, Team Possible would handle it best."

            Kim blushed, and Ron waved his hands in dismissal. "That's what we're here for!" Ron cried, Rufus peeking up from his pocket with a nod.

            "All right, Wade, what do you make of this?" Kim asked, pointing the scanners on her Kimmunicator to the box.

            "Just some crossed wires. If I can diagram it, can you follow?" he asked, even though he already knew the answer was yes. "Okay, here we go." A diagram of how the wires should be appeared on the screen where Wade's face was. "Start with the red one," he instructed.

            It was easy work, and all Ron did was hold the flashlight so Kim could see. In just a few minutes, the work was done.

            "It should start back up just fine now, once you put the fuse it," Wade said, his face finally reappearing on the Kimmunicator's screen.

            Sandy and Lee were very impressed and thanked the Team profusely. 

            "No big!" Kim said.

            "Your friend Wade certainly knows his electronics!" Lee observed.

            "Wade knows everything," Ron replied matter-of-factly. Kim laughed.

            Lee pulled the fuses out of the front pocket of his overalls, but Sandy snatched them from him.

            "I think _Kim should put these in. You, Lee, need more training." She handed the fuses to Kim, who snapped them into place. She flipped the switch and suddenly, the room was alit._

            "We just can't thank you enough!" Lee grinned. "If you ever need anything, just let us know!" He and Sandy both outstretched their hands.

            "Like Ron said, it's what we're here for!" Kim replied, she and Ron shaking hands with both of them in turn.

            "Whoa, Kim, I'm picking up a huge loss of energy just five miles south of you. Just now, when you switched the power in the plant on!" Wade interjected, his eyes widening. Kim and Ron could almost see his mind working. "Wait a second…the surge…someone must have been shielding their usage!" He tried to pinpoint the location of the new outage.

            "Wait, what's going on?" Ron asked.

            "Middleton Electric reported a broken circuit breaker about 8:21 A.M., and just before, there was a quick surge of power, just for a second. I thought that it was just a case of neighborhood over usage, but it's way too focused for that. It must have been someone else that caused the outage! Now that I look again, it's a pretty concentrated source." Wade's eyes moved like lightning across his screen. "It was definitely not a coincidence."

            "So someone's hogging the power…" Kim followed.

            "The loss is in the same spot as the surge," Wade reported. "It's…coming from the amphitheater in the Middleton Zoo?" 

            "The Middleton Zoo?" Kim echoed incredulously.

            "We'd better check it out, KP," Ron advised, his voice sounding important and urgent. 

            "We're on it, Wade," Kim reported, shutting down her Kimmunicator. She turned to the workers she had just helped. "If you need us again, you know how to reach me!" She called to Sandy and Lee, waving goodbye. She and Ron dashed through the halls and out the front door. Suddenly, Ron stopped, prompting Kim to also halt. She looked at him as if to say, "Hurry up!"

            "Kim, the Zoo is five miles from here. I don't know if I can run five miles," Ron admitted, sounding much less confident than before. Kim pondered this; she didn't want to run five miles, either. But their thoughts were interrupted by the jingling of keys from behind them. They turned and saw Lee, waving at them to join him. Kim and Ron smiled at him and jogged over to where Lee stood.

            "Come on, my car's around back! I'll give you a lift!" he cried, leading the way to the parking lot. They followed, and they all climbed into his green SUV.

            "Thanks, Lee!" Ron, Kim, and even Rufus, said in unison, buckling their seatbelts (with the exception of Rufus, who re-secured himself in Ron's pocket). Lee nodded as he started the car.

            "Don't mention it!" he replied, backing out of his parking spot and driving out of the lot as quickly as safely possible. "Just wanted to do my part."

            Kim grinned. She was so lucky to have so many allies. She would have to add Lee and Sandy to her ever-growing Christmas card list.

            She had her suspicions about the power surge and turned to Ron to voice them. "Do you think that maybe Dr. Drakken is behind this?"

            "He does like to overuse power…" Ron mused. "But then again, so do Senior Senior Senior and Senior Senior Junior." Talk about a tongue twister. "Junior's hair dryer alone could probably power Rhode Island."

            "Speaking of which," she continued. "What about Shego and Junior? Didn't they have some sort of…thing?"

            "Yeah, they did, didn't they?" Ron agreed, scratching his chin. But they didn't have time to ponder that now, as Lee had just reached the Zoo.

            "We'll get out here, don't want to make you have to park!" Kim said, unbuckling her seatbelt. Ron was also getting ready to exit.

            "It's okay, I'm a member!" Lee replied, pointing at the "Middleton ZooPals" decal on the left corner of his front windshield. "But if you're sure…"

            "Thanks again, Lee!" Kim and Ron chimed in unison, heading toward the large, lion shaped entrance of the Zoo.

            "Any time!" Lee yelled back, turning his car around.

            "Nice guy," Ron said to his best friend. "A little clumsy, though."

            "Reminds me of someone else I know," Kim answered. They reached the entrance, where a young woman was seated in a booth.

            "Three dollars, please," she said monotonously.

            "But we're not parking," Kim stated. "I'm Kim Possible, and--"

            The woman's face lit up. "Kim Possible?" she squeaked animatedly. "You're the one who saved my dad's dot com corporation from failing last quarter! Go right ahead!" Kim smiled and thanked the woman, running in. Ron started to follow, but the woman stopped him.

            "Three dollars, please," she said, the monotone returning. Kim sighed.

            "He's with me," she said flatly, running back to the entrance and dragging Ron in with her. "Ever get sick of that?" Kim asked Ron as they ran towards the amphitheater.

            "Nah," Ron replied genially. "I know we're a team."

            They followed the fish-shaped signs to the amphitheater, which was, coincidentally, right next to the rodent house. Ron and Rufus wanted to go in, but Kim promised that they would check it out after they solved the mystery of the power at the amphitheater.

            "There it is!" Kim shouted. There was some kind of…something, set up directly behind the concert dome, and even though she didn't know what it was…it was distinctly blue. That was all she needed to know. She and Ron shared a look, and in unison, they understood:

            "Dr. Drakken."


	3. Only the Lonely

Chapter 3 – Only the Lonely

            "This is way too weird. There's no sight of him for what, two weeks? And he shows up in Middleton?" Kim asked, giving the building a once over.

            "Well, it might be some other high tech villain with an obsession with the color blue, but the chances of that…" Ron trailed off.

            Kim was even more suspicious that it might not be Drakken when they found the door easily. Dr. Drakken at least tried to camouflage his door, even if it still always opened without any trouble. 

            Kim pulled out her Kimmunicator and contacted Wade. "We're here, Wade, and we're thinking Dr. Drakken. What do you think?"

            "I gotta agree with you there," the super genius replied, looking up from his computer screen. "Though his trademark security beams and cameras are missing. I don't know what's up with that."

            "Still got a location on Shego?" Kim asked.

            "She's at a resort in Barbados as of yesterday night when she checked in," Wade replied with a smile.  
            "Thanks, Wade!" Kim turned off her Kimmunicator and faced Ron. "Let's go inside.

            All she and Ron had to do was push, and they were inside. Right at the entrance, there was a spiral staircase in blue metal and chrome. The interior was distinctly Drakken, but there was something just a bit off. Something about it was different.

            "Something's weird," Ron pointed out.

            "Yeah!" Kim agreed. "It's less…" she searched for the best word, but all she came up with was: "coordinated?"

            "Nah, I was just thinking it's weird that Drakken's blue. Ever wonder why?" Ron asked. Kim sighed and pulled Ron behind her. "It's a valid concern!" Ron insisted to Kim. She rolled her eyes, and, since there was nowhere to go but up, Team Possible started to climb the stairs.

            The whole upkeep and style thing must have been Shego's area. Upon closer examination, the place wasn't just uncoordinated; Kim found that the makeshift lair looked downright substandard. The stairs creaked with every step, and Kim's hand flew to her grappling iron, just in case the stairs gave out. Shego must have been the architect as well.

            "Not exactly Dr. Drakken's best effort." Ron pointed to the wall on their left - the metal was thin and seemed to be bending for the worse. Rufus peeked out of Ron's pocket to survey the damage. "I would even venture to say discombobulated. I'd say that we are looking at the work of a sad and lonely man. Blue, if you will."

            "Stop being weird!" Kim hissed. "Let's just find Drakken and top whatever he's planning!" Part of her had to agree with Ron, though. Kim thought, as she and Ron climbed, about what Mika had said. It was really mind-boggling to think that Shego and Drakken were some kind of…soulmates or something.

            "KP?" Ron tapped her shoulder, one eyebrow raised.

            "Yeah?" Kim turned to him.

            "You just shuddered," he pointed out. He shook his head. "Thinkin' about the lovebirds?" Another visible shudder from Kim confirmed his suspicions. 

            They were about halfway up the long, winding staircase, and Ron was beginning to pant. Before he said anything, Kim held up her hand.

            "No, we are not there yet," she said firmly.

            "I wasn't going to ask that!" Ron protested. After a few moments, he asked, "Don't you have any kind of gadget that could make this faster?"

            "Just keep going," Kim muttered, not enjoying the stair climb any more than Ron was. There was a window to their left.

            "Look, you can see where they keep the baby giraffe!" Ron pointed out. As much as Kim liked baby animals, they had climbed too many stairs for her to get distracted by something cute.

            Without much more grumbling, Ron and Kim reached the top of the stairs, after which, both paused to pant heartily.

            "This better be worth the climb," Kim muttered.

            "It will be, Kim!" Ron assured her. The corridors continued to be dark, and it was apparent that Dr. Drakken would be in a foul mood. "I don't see any light bulbs…what did he need all that power for?"

            "Knowing Dr. Drakken…who knows?" Kim replied, reaching into her pocket and retrieving the flashlight she had been given at the power plant. "Oops, we'll have to give these back!" At least it would come in handy now. She switched it on and Ron did the same. They walked down the dark, barren hallway – there was only one direction that they could go.

            Finally, they came to a door. It was closed, and there was a sign on it that read "Keep Out!"

            "Who's he trying to keep out?" Kim wondered. She turned the knob, half expecting to find Dr. Drakken hard at work, plotting to take over Europe, but that wasn't what she found.

            There he was, reclined peacefully in an easy chair, blue slippers on his propped up feet, reading the newspaper, pencil in hand. He didn't even look up when the door was opened. 

            "I need a four-letter word for 'disease,'" he stated simply, no hostile tone in his voice.

            "Bane?" Kim offered, completely bewildered.

            "That's it!" Drakken replied, scratching the word in. "I've finished!"

            "What the…?" Her chin was practically on the floor.

            "Kim, he's a shadow of his former self! Without his spirit! Without his better half!" Ron insisted in a whisper. Unfortunately, it was a loud whisper, and Dr. Drakken folded his paper neatly and placed it on his lap.

            "I'm certain I don't know what you're talking about," he replied. Kim was once again taken aback – Drakken was wearing thick reading spectacles and his hair was combed back much more neatly than usual. He slipped off the glasses and set them down on a tray by his chair. Kim stared at the TV tray next to him. A Pebble Beach Golf Course mug and a bowl of…cheese curls sat atop it? Cheese curls?

            "He's in denial," Ron murmured to Kim, talking at her behind the back of his hand. Kim shook her head and assumed a more threatening stance.

            "All right, Dr. Drakken, we know you stole the power! Tell us what you're planning so we can stop you!" Kim stipulated.

            "Planning?" He let out a good-natured chuckle. "I'm afraid that it was an honest mistake – how was I to know that running my electric shaver, coffee maker, and my washing machine at the same time was too much for this old shack?" He reached down and set his reclined chair into the upright position and stood. He picked up his mug and looked inside, finding it empty. He walked at a leisurely place to the small black coffee maker to his right and turned to his 'company.' "Can I offer either of you a cup of coffee? It's decaf."

            "I don't drink coffee…" Kim stated, once again confused. "So…you're not trying to take over the world?"

            Dr. Drakken laughed again, picking up the coffee pot. "Lord, no!" He examined his mug as he poured himself another cup of decaf. "Duff Killigan gave me this last Christmas…nice guy, nice guy. I'll have to give him a call sometime."

            "Let me handle this, Kim," Ron offered, stepping in front of his best friend before she could protest. "Dr. Drakken, are you lonely?" he asked sympathetically.

            "What are you talking about? I finally have time to relax!" Drakken took a sip of his steaming black coffee and smiled. "These past few weeks have been just wonderful! I've caught up with my mother, gotten some shopping done, and I even started on my taxes. It's never too early, you know." He walked back to his easy chair and sat, rolling his shoulders to stretch as he sank back into the recliner. "I tell you, some days the back just gets so bad, you know? Being evil puts on another ten years."

            Kim was speechless, but Ron seemed to have plenty to say.

            "I do understand, Dr. D, sometimes, it's hard for me to get out of bed, too," he said.

            "Would you like some cheese curls?" Drakken offered. "I've got a whole bag in the cupboard, they were on sale at Smarty Mart this week."

            "Three for a dollar! Can't beat that!" Ron and his naked mole rat helped themselves.

            "Good to see that your generation knows the value of a dollar," Drakken replied, setting his chair to recline mode once again.

            "Sorry about the power failure, it could happen to anyone," Ron acknowledged. "If there's nothing else, then Kim and I should get back to school."

            Kim jabbed a finger into Ron's side, but he just responded with a wink. He grabbed her wrist and began to pull her to the door.

            "Wait!" Drakken called. As casually as he could, and Kim could tell that the offhandedness was forced, he added, "If you see Shego, please tell her to check her voicemail, would you?"

            "Will do," Ron replied. "Thanks for the cheese puffs!"

            "Come back any time!" Dr. Drakken suggested. "And there's an elevator to your right!" With a wave, Ron dragged Kim to the door, and the two turned to the right. Kim groaned.

            "Now he tells us about the elevator," she muttered, and pushed the button. Sure enough, the doors opened, and the two stepped inside. She pushed the first floor button and looked at Ron expectantly. "What was that all about?"

            "He's lonely! I wanted to give him some company," Ron replied.

            "But…what if he was hiding something? Ron, we should have grilled him!" Kim explained.

            "KP, you do _not_ grill a man in that state," he said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. He licked some of the orange cheese powder from his hands. "He may have looked happy, but he was indeed far from it."

            "Well obviously. But that doesn't change the fact that he is a supervillain and he was acting very suspiciously!" Kim insisted. "Doesn't his criminal record count for anything?"

            "Kimberly Ann Possible! Villains are people, too!" Ron pointed an accusing finger at his partner. "Haven't _you_ been heart-broken before?"

            "Well…"

            "Exactly! So there's only one thing for us to do," he began.

            "Go back to school and forget this ever happened?" she suggested.

            "No," Ron shot her a look. "Go back to school, then catch up with Shego!" he finished, Rufus nodding eagerly in agreement.

            "No! Didn't I tell you what Mika Parker said? We should let them figure this out on their own! We never get a break, and now that we have one, you want to meddle with a totally creepy relationship that will probably end up making things worse?" Kim shouted.

            Ron was undaunted. "Come on, Kim…doesn't the cupid thing count as saving the world? Imagine a lonely Drakken after he snaps?"

            Kim tried. All she could see was him sitting in a rocking chair, knitting like her Nana. "One less megalomaniac is what I see."

            "Well I see one more hopeless lover in a sea of solitude! We can't let that happen, Kim!" Ron looked up to the ceiling purposefully.

            "I admire your romanticism, Ron, really, I do, but can't you save it for people who aren't crazy?" They finally hit the bottom and the doors opened, right to the outside. They were back in the zoo, right next to the rodent house.

            Rufus squeaked in excitement, and Kim checked her watch. "Homeroom's over in fifteen," she said, and Ron and Rufus ran into the building and returned within a minute. "Ready?" Kim asked. "We're going to have to hoof it."

            Ron nodded, and the two ran back in the direction of school. 

            "So, how about it. Catch up with Shego?" Ron pouted.

            "I'll think about it," Kim replied.

            They didn't mention Shego or Drakken again until two days later.

*

            "Pleeease, Kim?" Ron begged. Although he had no puppy-dog pout, he did put up a pretty pathetic countenance, and Kim finally conceded. Wade had reported that Shego was on a cruise to the Cayman Islands, and her exact coordinates were blinking on the Kimmunicator, changing in real time. 

            "Fine. But just to make sure that she's not plotting her own world conquest." Those were the terms Kim had agreed to, and after school, Wade had lined up a flight to Shego's position with Roberto Gomez, a "chopper" news reporter from New Mexico's Channel 14 who usually observed traffic patterns.

            Kim and Ron were strapping on their parachute gear. "Thanks again for the ride, Roberto!"

            "It's nothing at all! After you stopped the Great Jam of '99 and helped me get the full coverage, I can't do enough for you!" the raven-haired reporter replied.

            "No big!" Kim replied humbly. "Anyone can coax a bear off of the road, I was just in the right place at the right time!" 

            Once they were over the coordinates, Kim and Ron bid their pilot goodbye and dropped down to the cruise ship. The cruise director was the first person to see them, and she was pleasantly surprised. She tucked her white clipboard under her arm and smiled brightly.

            "Well, I'll be! Kim Possible! I had no idea that this was a celebrity cruise!" She smoothed out some non-existent wrinkles on her pink blazer and skirt combo and outstretched her hand for Kim to shake.

            "Actually, I'm looking for a passenger. Her name is Shego, she's, um…green?" Kim asked after shaking the woman's hand.

            "Has there been a crime?" the director asked seriously. 

            Kim shook her head vigorously. 

            "No, no, just a friend of ours!" Ron insisted.

            "All right, let me check." The woman retrieved her clipboard and flipped through the pages. "Ah, Shego! She's currently getting a deep tissue massage in room 320A, on deck C. Is there anything else I can do for you? A drink? Something to eat?"

            "No thank you," Kim replied, cutting Ron off before he could request anything. They were currently, according to a sign, on deck A, so they headed to the stairs to get to deck C. Room 320 turned out to be very close to the stairs for some reason, and part A was the first sub-door inside room 320.

            Kim pushed the door open, Ron covering his eyes behind her. There were rows of tables, each with a swimsuit and towel-clad person laying on them, receiving a massage that looked rather painful to Kim. "It's co-ed Ron, open your eyes."

            She scanned each of the tables until she found one with a recognizable mess of black hair cascading down the side. Of course, Shego was being massaged by the largest, most muscular male masseuse in the room. 

            "A little to the right, Claude," Shego ordered peacefully. She sighed. "Right there, that's it…"

            "Can I help you?" Claude, the masseuse asked, turning to Kim and Ron. "Did you sign up for the 4:15?"

            This caused Shego to stir. She opened her eyes, which immediately narrowed when they fell upon Kim's face.

            "We're friends of Shego," Ron stated. "Can we borrow her for a second?"

            "Her time is, unfortunately, up. I'll see you tomorrow, same time," Claude sighed, waving at his client as she stood from the table. Shego stretched her arms above her head and turned to her "guests."

            "What do you want?" she demanded.

            "Same old Shego, Ron, see?" Kim insisted. "Can we go now?"

            "As much as I'd like to see you leave, as I'm due in the mud bath at 4:30, humor me. Are you, like, checking up on me or something?" Shego asked, dropping her pristine towel into the bin outside the door of 320A.

            "Yes, and you passed," Kim replied.

            "Good. Clearly, I am not up to anything. Can't I get a moment of peace?"

            "Seems like you've had a couple of week's worth," Ron observed, handing his pet a pair of sunglasses. Rufus was preparing to sunbathe on his shoulder, as they were approaching the top deck.

            "Everyone needs a vacation," Shego replied. Her skin was a healthy shade of…tanned green, and she looked pretty relaxed, as much as the high-tempered woman could be, after her massage.

            "Guess we'll be going then," Kim replied, dragging Ron.

            "Wait! Don't forget the message!" Ron insisted. Kim hung her head, knowing that it would cause trouble.

            "Message?" Shego asked, cocking an eyebrow suspiciously.

            "Dr. Drakken wants you to check your voicemail," he stated matter-of-factly. Kim prepared for a verbal onslaught, but received none.

            "Does he?" Shego asked. She reached into her bag, producing her mobile. "I haven't had this thing on in weeks." She shrugged. "Oh well, it's my vacation." She slid the phone back into her bag, trying and failing to hide the sinister grin on her face. "Now, if you don't mind, I've got a date with a mud bath on deck A." With that, she sauntered off in another direction. Kim also turned, but Ron waited in anticipation. 

            Kim shook her head and looked back to beckon Ron, but surprisingly, Shego also whirled around to face him.

            "If you see Dr. Drakken, tell him that he can leave all the voicemail he wants, but I just don't get any service out here," she added, a look of satisfaction on her face. It was clear that she wanted to say more, but that was all they were going to get, as Shego turned deliberately and headed to the mud room, mumbling.

            "What did I tell you, Kim? Who was right?" Ron asked. Kim sighed. She had to admit that Shego's controlled rage was surprising.

            "You were right," she admitted. It was really clear that the two villains were not happy and just not themselves when they were apart. "But I still don't see why we have to get involved in their little game, or whatever it is." She let out another familiar shudder. Every time she encountered it, villains in love was just way too weird.

            "Oh, we do." Ron pounded his right hand, a fist, into his open left hand. "We do." Rufus had nothing to add, as he was soaking up the rays.

            Kim, once again, shook her head, and pulled out her Kimmunicator to have Wade arrange a ride.


	4. Separation Anxiety

Chapter 4 – Separation Anxiety

            Ron Stoppable and Rufus spent the next few days hunched over a laptop computer on loan from Wade. Kim had only once inquired as to what they were doing, and she had been told that it was the "Master Plan." She didn't want to know anything else.

            There was nothing to tell about Dr. Drakken and Shego – Wade hadn't found anything, and Kim didn't mind.

            While Ron schemed, Kim took full advantage of her "break." She dealt with the minor problems, caught up with Monique, did some major shopping, and spent time with her family. Sure, there were other supervillains, but none of them were nearly as active as Dr. Drakken and Shego had been.       

            Just that day, she had stopped Senor Senior Senior and Senor Senior Junior from taking over a state of the art hair gel factory: Senor Senior wanted the machinery, Junior wanted the hair gel. 

            As Kim looked at herself in the mirror of her compact, for a fleeting second she thought that she should have inquired about a free sample of that gel for herself – parasailing had totally crushed the bounce in her coif…not that she was going anywhere tonight.

            Tonight was her mom and dad's anniversary, which meant that Kim would be babysitting her little brothers while their parents went out for dinner. 

            Kim shut her compact and set it down on the kitchen table. She sighed, but then nearly jumped when her Kimmunicator demanded her attention. It had been so quiet for the past few minutes.

            "Slow night, I hope?" Kim asked Wade, once she saw that his face held a relaxed smile, not a worried frown.

            "Molasses. Just thought I should let you know that my satellites aren't picking up anything! So, relax! Have fun with your brothers!" There was a touch of sarcasm in the genius's voice as he signed off.

            "Right…" Kim muttered. She nudged Ron, who was at her side at the table. "Come on – it is too quiet in the Tweebs' room, we'd better go check it out." She began to drag him, but Ron protested actively.

            "Hold up, KP! I'm hitting a breakthrough here!" Ron insisted, pointing at the clipboard. "Rufus and I have it all figured out!"

            _BOOM! _There was a large crash from above, shortly followed by the fire alarm. This was a fairly normal occurrence in the Possible household.

            "It can wait until we avert disaster upstairs!" Kim shouted, full on dragging Ron by the wrist.

            "See, that's what I'm telling you, Kim! We have to avert a much larger, Drakken-scale disaster! It's only a matter of time before he cracks!" He continued to thump his keyboard.

            "Well, my roof is cracking now. Let's take this one disaster at a time," Kim finished, dragging Ron upstairs. They found Jim and Tim extinguishing a small fire on their computer desk. "Jim! Tim! Take the rockets outside!" 

            "Aww, Kim, you're no fun!" Tim replied.

            "Yeah, it was just a little fire," Jim added.

            "You can't shoot those off in the house! Remember what mom said?" Kim went on. She stood on Tim's bed to shut off the fire alarm.

            "Fine…" muttered the twins. Reluctantly, they took their equipment outside. Rockets outside were better than no rockets at all.

            Kim turned to Ron. "Now, Drakken disaster?"

            "Look at this, KP!" Ron hovered the clipboard inches from Kim's face proudly. "Tell me that this isn't catastrophic!"

            Kim pushed the board back a few more inches to focus on it. "Graphs?" she asked, not yet impressed.

            "Yes, graphs! Graphs of cruise line prices and approval ratings!" Ron replied, like it made perfect sense.

            "Thinking of taking a cruise?" Kim asked, still not sensing any relevance to Drakken, aside from the Shego/cruise connection.

            "Lately, prices have been going down, see, and the cheapest is _Blue Moon_ lines. The strange part is that _Blue Moon_ also has the highest approval rating! One hundred percent! And we're talking a big liner – 1200 passengers a run, two runs a week!" Ron went on giddily. "Don't you see?"

            Kim was beginning to.

            "And guess where the cruise website is run from?" Ron went on. Before Kim had a chance to respond, Ron answered. "Middleton." He had a very satisfied smirk on his face.

            "You don't think—" Ron shoved a finger in front of Kim's face before she could finish.

            "Dr. Drakken!" Once again, Ron cut Kim off. "And that's not all. Get this – he's using MIND CONTROL! He's going to get to Shego, while punishing the masses of innocent cruise-goers!"

            Kim let it soak in, placing her hands on her hips.

            "Wow Ron, I'm impressed. You figured this all out yourself?" she asked, a little suspicion in her voice.

            "Of course!" Ron replied. Rufus growled at him and Kim laughed.

            "With Wade's help, I know. All right. So, you up for a cruise?" she asked.

            Ron already had his swimsuit and sunglasses packed.

            "I'm there!" Ron exclaimed. He even had a small sunchair for Rufus. "In fact—" The phone rang.

            "Hello?" Kim answered. She paused to listen to the voice on the other end. "They _what_?" There was then some screaming on the other end, and Ron thought he heard something about calling the movers. "Don't worry, Mrs. Dunway, I'll take care of it." Kim hung up the phone. "Rocket landed in the neighbor's deck," she explained gravely to her best friend, hurrying to the open window and leaning over the edge. "Jim! Tim!" she shouted into the yard. "You two are SO dead!" 

            Kim's twin brothers looked at each other urgently and took off in opposite directions.  Kim turned to Ron.

            "Give me five minutes," she said before bolting out the door and down the staircase. As it turned out, she didn't even need that much time. When she reached the front door, she was met by her parents, each of them holding a very guilty looking brother.

            "There was a two hour wait at the restaurant, Kimmy. But just look at who we found outside." Mr. Possible looked amused and irritated at the same time.

            "We also found Mrs. Dunway." Mrs. Possible looked less amused. The four of them walked off and Kim and Ron sat down in the living room.

            "So, what's our course of action?" Kim asked. About an hour had passed since the rocket incident, and Jim and Tim were sitting on the couch looking quite contrary. "Go directly to the source? Or try out one of these cruises ourselves?" She and Ron were sitting on the floor, the Kimmunicator propped up on the coffee table in front of them so that Wade could take part in the conversation as well.

            "I've got some info that might make up your mind. I've hacked into the cruise registration filed – guess who just signed up today," Wade said. He hauled up the information, and Kim and Ron's eyes both widened. There it was, Shego's name and registration form.

            "She actually fell for it?" Kim was amazed. 

            "I know," Wade replied. "I was pretty shocked, too."

            "But you know, once she figures it out-" Kim began.

            "Which she's bound to do," Ron interjected.

            "She's going to be furious," Kim finished. "All right, Wade, sign us up."

            "Fake the names?"

            "Please and thanks!" 

            "All right. Lucy Harris and…Frederick…" Wade paused.

            "Ooh! Can my last name be Rubinikov?" Ron asked excitedly, clasping his hands together.

            "I was thinking Smith, but I guess…Frederick Rubinikov it is. S.M.S. Blue Moon sets sail tomorrow from Florida. I'll call in a favor for your ride." Wade signed off.

            "All right! Guess I better throw in my _other_ swimsuit!" Ron announced, causing Kim to cringe.

            "Not the one with the floaties…" she groaned.

            "Kim! That was LAST year." Ron shook his head. "This year, I've got a really good one."

            "Forget the swimsuits, Ron, we have a ride to catch." She tugged him behind her to wait for the ride.

*

            After sister stunt pilots Jane and Marta Laskey dropped Kim and Ron off at the Blue Moon's docking station in Florida on their way to a convention, Team Possible went undercover. Ron's Smarty Mart disguise-making kit came in handy, and he had made Kim a blond wig and a quick mask. For himself, he chose black hair and a moustache. Their touristy clothing blended them perfectly with the other cruise goers, but there was no sign of Shego.

            "Blue Moon Cruise patrons, this way!" A loud, female voice called. Kim and Ron looked up, and on the platform stood a tall, blond woman with a beaming smile. She was wearing a blue polo and white pleated chinos and a nametag labeling her as "Laurie." There was something strange about her, though, because her eyes looked glazed over. "This way, please!" She indicated to the ramp leading up to the ship with a sweep of her arm.

            Kim pulled out her Kimmunicator and, in the lowest voice she could manage, spoke with Wade.

            "Anything suspicious, Wade?"

            "Not that I can see…I'll keep scanning."

            Kim tucked the device into her handbag and followed the group of tourists up the ramp, keeping watch for any changes in the behaviors of people around her. Ron was less interested in their mission and more interested in the clientele.

            "Think I could find a girlfriend on this ship?" he asked, leaning over to Kim.

            "Doubtful, Rubinikov. Just keep your eyes open," Kim replied.

            "Will do!" Ron replied eagerly, looking at the blond girl to his left in a white sundress.

            "You know what I meant," Kim scolded, rolling her eyes.

            "Please head into the ballroom where you'll meet the cruise director and please, help yourself to the appetizers!" Laurie was leading the groups into the ship.

            The décor was decidedly blue and clean, but overall, very mediocre. Kim was puzzled…something didn't add up. Why was this the highest-rated cruise on the market? Nothing really stood out. Maybe the food…Kim was about to reach for a petit four, but she looked over at the man who had just eaten one. His eyes were glazed, just like Laurie's, and he was smiling stupidly.

            "The food…" Kim gasped. She turned to Ron. "Don't take anything-" she began, but it was too late.

            "This is really good stuff," he said, eerily present. Kim spun around – everyone was suddenly very excited. 

            "Wade…" Kim stammered. "Can you scan this petit four?" She pointed her Kimmunicator at the plate of desserts as discreetly as she could.

            "Sure thing."

            While Wade scanned, Kim looked around, hoping to find Shego.  Something didn't add up. Everything Kim knew about Shego told her that Dr. Drakken's better half would never have fallen for such an obvious trick. And yet, she had registered for the cruise. But where was she?

            "Please, help yourself! The director will be out soon!" Laurie pushed the tray into Kim's shoulder.

            "No thanks, really, I'm fine," she stammered.

            "I insist!" Laurie was not giving in.

            "Fine!" Kim replied. She took a petit four and crushed it in her hand, shoving it next to her mouth, hoping to convince the perky guide. "Mmmm! I'm having fun!" Kim feigned her excitement and tried to imitate the glazed look.

            "Greetings, happy customers!" Kim hadn't noticed the entrance of the cruise director, but once she heard his voice, she knew what the surprise was.

            "Dr. Drakken!" she exclaimed. It was lost, however, drowned out by the roar of applause for Drakken. 

            Kim still had the upper hand – Drakken didn't know she was here, and he didn't know that there was someone who wasn't under the influence of whatever was in the petit fours.

            "Kim! It's some sort of fluoride compound! I'll look up some antidotes- can you handle things there?"

            "I'm good, I think," Kim replied. She was partially lying – people were packed so tightly in the room that there was barely enough space to think. She needed some more room, she needed somewhere to think and to avoid any suspicion – maybe Drakken had the place bugged? 

            She scanned the room for a free corner, but the best she could come up with was what appeared to be a supply closet along the southeast wall. 'Good enough,' she thought. She shoved her Kimmunicator in her bag and dropped down on the floor, in a crawl. Hearing a squeak at her side, she looked over. 

            "Rufus! You didn't eat anything!" The naked mole rat gave her a tiny thumbs-up in response, and together, they crawled forward. "Got a plan for taking down Drakken?" she asked Rufus, who shook his tiny head. 

            The ship was sailing smoothly, and Kim wondered briefly if the Captain was also under the influence.

            After some silent gestures, the two headed for the supply closet to try to formulate a plan with room to breathe. The crowd did have its advantages, because no one in the room noticed anything. They were too busy radiating love at Dr. Drakken. Kim imagined that the lovelorn "doctor" (he was a dropout, how could he use that title, anyway?) would take any love he could get.

            The closest broom closet was just a few crawls away, and there was a large gap under the door. The plan was for Rufus to go under, unlock the door, and let Kim in. There she could rap freely with Wade. 

            When they reached the door, the tiny rodent scurried under, and the next thing Kim heard, aside from the cheers for the pompous Cruise Director Drakken, was a tiny shriek, followed by a louder one. 

            Kim sprang to her feet and turned the knob – the door was unlocked, to her amazement, and the closet was not empty.

            "Shego?!?"

            The tall, pale woman was holding some sort of laser and looking more surprised at than afraid of Rufus. At Kim's voice, she looked up, perplexed.

            "Who the hell are you?" Shego demanded. Kim realized that she was still incognito. She quickly ripped off her mask and shut the door behind her. "Kim Possible? What are you doing here?"

            "What are you doing in here? You're not out there?" Kim was just as shocked as Shego.

            "You mean…wait, how did you know I would be here at all?" 

            "Ron and I did some snooping. We saw that you were signed up for the cruise, and we wanted to stop…the ensuing…sitch." Kim's eyes drifted to the laser. Looking back, Kim realized that it had been pretty stupid to think that Shego, with her abundance of common sense, would have bitten Dr. Drakken's bait. Who better than Shego to guess Dr. Drakken's every move?

            "You mean you thought I would be brainwashed?" Shego let out an acerbic laugh. "Please, like I would fall for Drakken's mind control hors d'œuvre. I saw it coming from a mile away."

            "Just what are you doing here, then?" Kim demanded, hands on her hips now that she was back in mission mode. Rufus hopped up on her shoulder, demanding an explanation as well. 

            "Oh, you mean my laser! I was wondering when we'd get to that." Shego smirked coldly and gingerly stroked her laser gun. "I'm going to kill him," she stated as if it were nothing.

            Kim and Rufus were speechless. Shego was, without Dr. Drakken, very efficient.

back


	5. Fight the Feeling

Chapter Five – Fight the Feeling

"Kill him?" Kim stammered. Clearly, Shego wasn't taking separation as well as she and Ron had originally thought. "Isn't that a little…"

"Harsh?" Shego scratched her head. "Well, yeah, you know, it is. But that's what makes it fun!" She was grinning quite evilly. "Now out of my way!"

"Wait!" Kim insisted. This was _so_ not her area of expertise. 'What would Ron say?' she thought, shaking her hands frantically. "Can't we talk this over? I mean, there _are_ innocent people out there."

"Right, like I care? Besides, I'm aiming for Dr. D and Dr. D alone, so you can step aside, teen hero. I'm not planning on harming any innocents." Shego shoved Kim aside and reached for the doorknob.

Suddenly, it came to her. Ron's voice, inside her head. 'Make her remember, Kim! Make her remember the PASSION! Use that reverse psycho-mology stuff!' It was as if Ron's spirit had channeled her own and told her what to say. It was a long shot, but it was all she had.

"Don't let me stop you, then," Kim began, stepping aside. "I certainly won't miss him."

"That makes two of us." Shego was unaffected.

"Go on then," Kim went on, beginning to panic. She was just plain bad at this stuff – where was the Ron voice now? "It's obvious that things aren't working between you, Drakken is so better off dead."

"My point exactly," Shego went on, annoyed. As she took a determined step forward, Kim took a step to the side, once more blocking the door.

Inwardly, Kim cursed. Having Drakken out of the way was tempting, but he didn't deserve to die, especially not at the hands of his vengeful ex-girlfriend. And Shego wasn't giving in. It was time to try another plan. The teen hero racked her brain, trying to think of what Ron would say.

"We always hurt the ones we love, don't we…" Kim let her voice trail off dramatically, her hand reaching out to try and snag the laser.

"Love?" Shego spat. "That's long, long gone, Kimmy." She let out a bitter laugh, yanking the weapon out of Kim's reach. "Now move!" She set the power and shot out a beam. Kim ducked, but she was relieved to find that Shego was only aiming to unhinge the door.

So, apparently, old love would eventually fade into resentment in the hands of evil people. Kim put it on mental file.

This method wasn't working at all. And that laser looked much more deadly than Shego's normal flaming hands. No matter how good her aim was, someone innocent was going to get hurt.

"Why kill Drakken? Why not just live and let live?" Kim pried, hoping she didn't sound too desperate.

"Because his mere existence INFURIATES me!" And with a yell, Shego shoved Kim out of the way and kicked down the door.

Kim's hand flew to her Kimmunicator. "How's that antidote coming, Wade?" she pleaded worriedly.

"I've almost got it finished!" Wade replied, furiously brewing something yellow in a beaker. Kim looked out of the doorway to see Shego advancing on an unsuspecting Drakken.

"Shego! What a lovely—why are you pointing that at me?" Dr. Drakken's tone went from pleased to panicked.

"I am SICK of you holding me back!" Shego shot back, aiming for Drakken's head.

"H-holding you back?" Dr. Drakken was plainly petrified, but before Kim could spring into action, divine intervention took place.

"Hey! That girl wants to hurt the captain!" a Hawaiian shirt-clad tourist shouted. The rest of the customers took notice, and their looks of joy changed to defiant rage.

"No one touches the captain under my watch!" Laurie the cruise director dropped her clipboard and rolled up her sleeves dramatically. The other patrons were doing the same, advancing on Shego as if the laser was some child's plaything.

"Never thought this brainwashing would work for me," Kim stated flatly, she and Rufus staring ahead stunned.

"Got the antidote, Kim! I've uploaded it, so all you have to do it point and shoot," Wade said proudly. Of course, now that the crowd was being useful, the antidote was ready.

"Wait! The mob is stopping Shego!" Kim replied.

As she and her comrades, naked mole rat and satellite image computer whiz, looked on, hundreds of tourists advanced upon Shego. Some rushed to cover the villainess's eyes, some grabbing her hands. Ron, Kim noted proudly, went straight to disarming the laser. Maybe she could keep him brainwashed for a while…

"You shall PAY!" a bloodthirsty little girl shot out. Kim noticed that this young patron attached to Shego's leg was particularly spirited, especially when she bit into the woman's calf.

"Minions, p-please!" Dr. Drakken stammered. For someone using mind control, he seemed to have an amazing lack of power over the crowd. "Leave the nice woman alone!"

"I am not-" Shego began, flaming up her hands, "a nice woman!" She pushed a heap of customers off of her limbs and charged at Dr. Drakken. Kim tended to the fallen customers, but the only problems they had were some slightly singed articles of clothing. They all kept mumbling about protecting the captain. She could have freed them then, but maybe they shouldn't remember this….

"Can't we talk about this, dumpling?" he asked, meekly wringing his hands. Shego flinched at the nickname.

Thinking fast, Kim pointed and shot her Kimmunicator at Ron. His eyes returned to their normal shade of brown, and he looked around, confused, but Kim grabbed him. Rufus left Kim's pocket for Ron's.

"I think talking is a great idea," she put in, dragging the disoriented Ron up to the heat of the battle.

"Darling, we are so through with talking." Shego's voice was beyond icy and anything but affectionate as she approached her former partner, laser pointed at him. If only Ron could have taken it away when he'd had the chance.

"But…I thought you didn't share my passion for world conquest…how am I holding you back?" Dr. Drakken stammered, frantically crossing his arms over his face to face the inevitable.

"Oh, I don't care about power or world conquest. But every time I try to have a lucid thought, I can't, because of YOU!" Shego shouted, practically breathing her green fire.

"Kim, what's going on?" Ron asked sleepily, slowly coming to. He rubbed his eyes and looked around himself.

"Cruise ship, mind control, Shego's got a laser!" Kim filled him in as quickly as she could. Ron shook his head vigorously, trying to get back into the game. Shego and Drakken were still going at it, or more, Shego was going at Drakken.

"So, I realized that until I kill you, I won't be able to sleep!" Shego growled.

"Does this mean that you still…" Drakken was hopeful.

"Look," Kim cut him off. "Obviously, you two have some things to work out." Things that didn't involve a multitude of innocent people.

The fact that Shego hadn't shot yet was slightly reassuring. It meant that Shego wasn't desperate or crazy enough just yet. Maybe if Kim could let Drakken escape, she could escort the victims off the ship. Then it hit her.

"The victims…" Kim said to herself. There _was _still this angry mob closing in on the stage, maybe she could use it to her advantage. And she did have Ron now, although he was still pretty out of it. Things were looking up.

"This is one messy relationship," Ron muttered, looking around the room. The mob was fast approaching.

"Drakken, tell your customers to rally around you!" Kim hissed in his direction.

"I heard that!" Shego interjected. "Do you really think that's going to work?" But apparently, Dr. Drakken did. He followed Kim's instructions, eyes alight with a new hope for life.

"Minions—" he began. "I mean, honored guests! Form a circle around your captain!" Dr. Drakken tried to speak forcefully, but the speech was punctuated with squeaks due to feat of impending doom.

"Anything for you, captain!" The mass of patrons made devoted haste.

"So, Shego, now's your chance for a clear shot! You going to kill him or not?" Kim propositioned confidently as the people closed in around Drakken.

Shego's face went rigid. She reassumed the aim she had shirked to yell at Drakken, pointed, and fired…

…about two inches above Dr. Drakken's head. If she was going to shoot again, she would need time to recharge her weapon. She started to repower up her laser, but just mere moments later, the mass of cruisegoers formed a tight circle around their beloved captain.

Kim had to act fast. Dr. Drakken had committed a crime here, with the brainwashing, but she didn't want him to die, and Shego apparently did. So, Kim did what she had to. Drakken was a lucky man today.

"I can't believe I'm doing this," she muttered, tossing one of Wade's famous jet packs to Dr. Drakken. "Blast out of here!" she instructed. Shego had stopped recharging her weapon and aimed again.

"I'll see you later, Shego, dear," he cackled, confidence restored at finally having the upper hand. The evil genius strapped on the pack smugly and blasted up and through the roof. Shego never shot, she just watched him.

Kim watched him until he was out of sight. She should have known all along that Shego wasn't going to shoot. She was evil, but she was still human. But then again, this was Shego, and Kim knew that the woman was determined and selfish to a fault. Maybe she had just run out of batteries? Or maybe Shego really was soft, deep down? Kim just couldn't fathom that entirely. So, before she started to free the patrons and clean up the fake cruise ship mess, Kim had a question to ask.

"Were you really going to do it, Shego?"

But Shego was gone. Through the window, Kim could see the villainess speeding away on a jet ski, in the opposite direction of where Dr. Drakken had flown.

"I guess you'll never know," said Ron mysteriously. He still seemed entirely dazed, but with Rufus's help, he was coming to.

* * *

"Come on, let's get to work," Kim sighed. She began pointing and shooting each of the customers in turn. "We've got a lot of cleaning up to do."

"And thus, the last ship Blue Moon Cruise Line docked today. Thanks to teen hero Kim Possible, all passengers were seen safely to land and checked in local hospitals. There were no injuries, but the cruise director, known as "Dr. Drakken," is still at large. If you or someone you know was a passenger on Blue Moon during the past month and you…"

Kim and Ron were parked on Ron's couch watching the news. In front of them, the twins were playing an intense game of Strategories. While the reporter spoke, clips of Kim and Ron escorting passengers off the ship were shown. None of the passengers seemed to have any recollection of Dr. Drakken and Shego, or the fight that had transpired.

In the day that had passed, Wade had attempted to track the supervillains but found nothing.

"Maybe they finally finished each other off," Jim suggested, moving his piece forward three spaces.

"Unlikely," Kim replied. "But why didn't Shego shoot?"

"Come on, KP, can't you tell? I was half out of it and even I could see it!" Ron put in.

"See what?" Kim demanded.

"Shego! Did you look at her eyes? She's definitely still got a soft spot for him! Ooh! Does this mean I caught something that you missed?" Ron smiled, very proud of himself.

"I didn't look at her eyes because I was too busy looking at her laser!" Kim shot back. She hadn't noticed Shego's eyes at all, actually.

"Nobody wants to be lonely, Kim, and I think Shego realized that, back there with the laser in her hands. She could have done it, but her heart wasn't in it," Ron explained. Kim hadn't thought of it that way.

"Wow, Ron, I had no idea you were such a romantic," she observed. As usual, however, serious Ron didn't last.

"The ladies love it!" Ron whipped out his naked mole rat for the obligatory high five.

"So, did you get the matchmaking out of your system?" Kim asked. "Can we give it a rest?"

"Yeah, they probably need some cool down time…we'll try again next week!" Ron announced. Kim's eyes bugged.

"No we won't! I am not going through that again! Maybe it's fate, Ron, maybe this is how things are just going to be from now on."

"But KP!" Ron insisted, taking on his dramatic voice. "Would you be able to live with yourself? Could you live with the injustice? Knowing that you could have reunited two lovers and didn't?"

Kim rolled her eyes. This was ridiculous.

"Look. If they stir up more trouble, we'll be there to stop it. But let's not go looking for trouble where there isn't any," she reasoned.

"I guess you have a point," Ron replied. "Fine. We'll wait it out."

* * *

Sorry this chapter is shorter than my others have been, but I really felt that this chapter needed to end here. I'm also sorry that I've been so slow with updates!


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